


Oxymoron

by dreamfall



Category: The Magnificent Seven (TV)
Genre: Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-01
Updated: 2017-04-01
Packaged: 2018-10-13 11:45:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10513110
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamfall/pseuds/dreamfall
Summary: He’d heard it a thousand times before, the most ludicrous pairing of words in the English language, more so than ‘military intelligence’ or ‘exact estimate’ or, Mother’s favorite, ‘act naturally’.





	

“Aww, now, honey, you know the kid an’ me’re just friends!”

There was a laugh, a joke he didn’t hear over the rushing in his ears, the breathless ache like he’d been punched in the stomach as his hand tightened on the glass in his hand. ‘Just friends.’ He’d heard it a thousand times before, the most ludicrous pairing of words in the English language, more so than ‘military intelligence’ or ‘exact estimate’ or, Mother’s favorite, ‘act naturally’. ‘Just _friends_.’ Because friends were so common? So prevalent? It had taken him more than thirty years to find those he would call friends, and he couldn’t imagine having so many or having them come so easily that he could ever consider them ‘ _just_ friends’.

“Breathe, Ez.” 

The voice was a bare whisper of breath, would be inaudible more than a few inches away, the warmth of the speaker familiar and reassuring behind him, and he obediently dragged in a breath, managing to do it quietly, and turned to see Vin watching the pair at the bar (struggling again over that absurd hat) with quiet, sad eyes. “None of ‘em get it,” Vin murmured, voice still nearly silent as his eyes flicked about to the others, who were watching the scene with varying levels of cheer and contentment. “Glad they don’t,” he added.

And that, finally, made the knot in Ezra’s stomach loosen and his grip on his glass relax a bit. ‘ _Just friends_.’ He let the warmth of amusement and affection—and alcohol—soothe him as he took a long swallow. “Gentlemen,” he called, setting aside the empty glass. “Would any of you care to partake in a friendly game of chance?”

**Author's Note:**

> Itty bitty, but I finally decided it stood better alone than shoe-horned into something longer.


End file.
